"Where the new story of Malmö is" - Urban development, the case of Holma and Kroksbäck in Malmö, Sweden

Sammanfattning: Holma and Kroksbäck are two socially vulnerable, enclosed neighbourhoods in Malmö, a city in the south of Sweden. There is a development plan to integrate and strengthen these areas. The aim of this thesis was to analyse matters of spatial segregation in an urban development project. How these matters were addressed and what factors might have an impact on them are questions this paper try to answer. The investigations were carried out with qualitative text analyses of an urban planning program, newspaper articles, petitions, and a written municipal response to the petitions. The results of the investigations indicate that there currently are exclusionary tendencies towards these areas. Mainly as Holma and Kroksbäck are perceived as deviating from the desired norms. The plans and the reactions to them contain factors that might enhance the exclusionary practices, through processes such as gentrification and spatial purification. But there are also indicators in the results for that inclusion and tolerance could be achieved within this development. Through for example investments in creating attractive public spaces for encounters with difference and involvement of the local population.